Thursday, May 8, 2025

Thursday Devotional – Jesus is Worthy to Unleash the 5th Trumpet Judgment (5/8/25)

Now back to where we were in Revelation! We are in the middle of the 7 trumpet judgments. After Jesus opened the 7th seal of the scroll and heaven stopped in silence for half an hour, then we saw the first 4 trumpet judgments unleashed on the earth. The next three are even more severe.

Rev 8:13-9:12 13 As I watched, I heard an eagle that was flying in midair call out in a loud voice: “Woe! Woe! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth, because of the trumpet blasts about to be sounded by the other three angels!”

The fifth angel sounded his trumpet, and I saw a star that had fallen from the sky to the earth. The star was given the key to the shaft of the Abyss. When he opened the Abyss, smoke rose from it like the smoke from a gigantic furnace. The sun and sky were darkened by the smoke from the Abyss. And out of the smoke locusts came down on the earth and were given power like that of scorpions of the earth. They were told not to harm the grass of the earth or any plant or tree, but only those people who did not have the seal of God on their foreheads. They were not allowed to kill them but only to torture them for five months. And the agony they suffered was like that of the sting of a scorpion when it strikes. During those days people will seek death but will not find it; they will long to die, but death will elude them.

The locusts looked like horses prepared for battle. On their heads they wore something like crowns of gold, and their faces resembled human faces. Their hair was like women’s hair, and their teeth were like lions’ teeth. They had breastplates like breastplates of iron, and the sound of their wings was like the thundering of many horses and chariots rushing into battle. 10 They had tails with stingers, like scorpions, and in their tails they had power to torment people for five months. 11 They had as king over them the angel of the Abyss, whose name in Hebrew is Abaddon and in Greek is Apollyon (that is, Destroyer).

12 The first woe is past; two other woes are yet to come.

This 5th judgment is so severe that people seek death (vs 6). However, in God’s sovereignty, they will not be able to escape their pain through death. I think that is His grace. The people experiencing the pain might not think so, but He is giving them yet another chance to turn and respond to Him before they do die and it is too late.

God will also graciously spare those who have His seal on their forehead (see chapter 7 and the devotional from 3/20/25). Those with God’s seal will not experience this judgment like the people around them (vs. 4). What a gracious, detailed and Sovereign God we serve!

Jesus is not only worthy to open the scroll and unleash judgment, but He is worthy to withhold judgment from His sealed children! Are you one of His children? If so, how will you praise Him for His grace today?